self-titled - no. 1 - (Page 57)

The band played six shows, including sets in Tel Aviv, Haifa, Jerusalem, a Bethlehem street and a Kibbutz located 0 miles south of Tel Aviv and generating enough hype to have a few paparazzi run-ins along the way. “In Haifa, there were these guys hiding in bushes with telescopic cameras taking pictures of me,” says St. Pe. Fortunately, between shows the band members had time to enjoy the local culture. “We got to swim in the Dead Sea and go to a little place where Peter and a little guy named Jesus started Christianity,” St. Pe continues. “We saw where he walked on water.” “I got baptized there,” adds Alexander. “It’s such a pain in the ass when they baptize you. It was kind of like a racket there where you’re supposed to pay these official guys to baptize you. When we didn’t use any of them, they started yelling all this shit about sacrilege and disrespect to other devouts. We figured, ‘Hey, Jared’s dad’s a preacher and ministerial lineage counts for something in this day and age of brimstone and hellfire.’ We even had some crazy lady yelling. She was backing us up, like, ‘It’s their spiritual experience!’” For a more objective take on the situation, the entire sequence has been recorded and posted on Vice TV’s Website, vbs.tv. Despite the hectic schedule, the band shows no signs of slowing down onstage. Los Valientes del Mundo Nuevo, a 00 Vice-released live album recorded in Tijuana, Mexico, provided a delirious glimpse of the band’s chaotic stage presence, but you can’t truly begin to appreciate the Black Lips’ live antics until you see that first pint of beer spew forth during a bluesy stomper like “Lean.” Chalk up much of the band’s stamina to the fact that no one member is burdened with the label of frontman. Although Swilley probably boasts the most lead vocal parts, Bradley and Alexander share spotlight time as well, and on psychedelic fan favorite “Hippie, Hippie, Hoorah,” no part is more important than St. Pe’s backwards surf riff. It’s an onstage egalitarianism that threads through nearly everything the band does together. “Between the four of us, we could write an album in a week,” boasts St. Pe. “A lot of Good Bad Not Evil was written in the studio in ten days’ time.” “We like to keep it democratic like that,” adds Bradley. Marching through the Williamsburg streets, the band continues to build the intensity sparked by acoustic renditions of its catalog. Just a short time earlier, the chirpy “Dirty Hands” had inspired a sing-along, providing priceless footage for the MTV cameras in attendance at Sound Fix. Miraculously avoiding police attention, the Lips convene outside the Music Hall of Williamsburg. Despite repeated requests by the venue’s personnel to cut the ballyhoo, Swilley and Alexander urge the crowd in tow to bang whatever percussive objects they can get their hands on. Only a few minutes later backstage, the guys show slight signs of wear as Bradley takes a brief nap while the opening bands play. “Sometimes it’s tough partying as hard as our fans because, for us, every night is Friday night. The last thirty-six nights have been Friday nights,” says St. Pe. “But for the fans, it’s their fifteen dollars. It’s their one night to have fun, and you can understand them getting belligerent when all of us don’t feel like getting shit-faced at the after party.” http://vbs.tv

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of self-titled - no. 1

self-titled - no. 1 Contents Spiritualized No Age Les Savy Fav The Teenagers Booka Shade Michael Gira Ellen Allien Magik Markers Jens Lekman Yeasayer Daptone Records Tipping Point Boris Fiery Furnaces Black Dice Black Mountain The Black Lips

self-titled - no. 1

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